


It Was Always You

by Phoenixnext



Category: Mahou Shoujo Lyrical Nanoha | Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-11
Updated: 2019-03-11
Packaged: 2019-11-15 16:42:25
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 14,219
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18077132
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Phoenixnext/pseuds/Phoenixnext
Summary: Junior Enforcer Fate T Harlaown's homecoming after her first long term mission comes with an unwelcome guest, Enforcer Noir Vespers. Noir, a cousin of Yuuno, will be staying with Fate in her dorm during their dock time becoming an obstacle to Nanoha's already limited Fate-time. Will this new interloper steal Fate for good or is this finally the impetus they need to finally come together?





	1. Chapter One

**Author's Note:**

> I do not own MGLN, I make no profits from my writing  
> Please leave a kudos or review if you liked what you read.

The battleship Aquila had just docked and the crew was beginning their disembarking after a six month tour in space. Families are crowded around waiting for their loved ones and there are many moments of lovers reuniting with passionate embraces and kisses. Hayate and Nanoha are waiting further back, having spotted Admiral Lindy Harlaown (Ret) and Admiral Chrono Harlaown standing near the front of the crowd awaiting their youngest family member, with them is surprisingly Arf in her puppy form and Yuuno Scrya.  
Hayate pokes at Nanoha seeing the pair standing with the Harlaowns, "Ne Nanoha-chan, why can't we stand with Chrono-kun and Lindy-san? Arf-san and Yuuno-kun are with them so I don't think we'd be "barging" into their family reunion."  
Sighing and longing inside to join the group herself so she'd even be one second closer to greeting her favorite blonde she restrained herself, "No Hayate-chan, Arf-san is Fate's familiar and has every right to stand with the Harlaowns as for Yuuno-kun I'm not sure why he's over there but I'm sure there's a good reason. I don't want Fate-chan to feel pressured to choose between us and her family, they have first claim on her, as real friends we should let them enjoy each other's presence for a bit before bowling them over."  
"Hmm sure, more like you don't want to alienate your future in-laws," the short brunette teased.  
Nanoha turned a nice cherry red at this, Hayate had been teasing her more and more of late over her not so secret feeling for the blonde having decided it was the best way to stop Nanoha's whining over missing her best friend. Sputtering, "Hay-hayate, don't say such things! It's one thing to tease me when we are alone but I don't want you making Fate-chan uncomfortable."  
Now it was the brunette's turn to sigh, she had tried to convince the girl to just come out and admit her feelings for their mutual best friend during one of their infrequent video calls but Nanoha had insisted if she was going to admit anything she wanted to do it face to face. How Nanoha could be so unsure of herself was exasperating, it was obvious to everyone that Fate was deeply, utterly, and completely in love with Nanoha. The poor blonde had all but announced it over the intercom and tattooed it to her forehead but the stubborn Nanoha had refused to believe they loved the same way. While Hayate was yanking her hair out in frustration Fate just shrugged and decided to continue to love the girl as openly as she could, shower her attention on her and hoped one day she'd realize she was completely serious. So while everyone around them considered them a de facto item only Nanoha was foolish enough to still claim they were only just friends.  
The last of the grunts had exited the ship and the officers and the Enforcers were now disembarking, a familiar head of blonde hair descended while her arm was linked with a tall handsome coal black haired man. He was in the uniform of an Enforcer and the fitted black uniform made him look more dashing then it ever did the blonde girl's brother. The black haired man hugged the shorter Yuuno warmly and then embraced both the Harlaowns comfortably before kneeling to greet the excited puppy Arf. The look on Nanoha's face could only be described as "White Devil Mode," and Hayate who always liked living on the edge decided to poke the dragon in the eye, "Oh dear, looks like Fate-chan is introducing a new boyfriend to her family."  
Swallowing hard and trying not to let the raging beast inside loose at these obviously meant to infuriate words, "It's a good thing that Fate-chan is making new friends. Let's go Hayate-chan, we can see her later."  
Turning to leave she heard Hayate scream out the blonde's name and begin to wave her hands in the air to catch the other girl's attention. Fate turned and her face broke out into a wide smile at the sight of the auburn head next to the wildly gesticulating girl. Without a word or glance at the group around her she bolted forward to greet her best friends, well actually she wanted to hug Nanoha but she'd get around to greeting Hayate when she got a moment. Hayate could see the homing beacon practically flashing as the blonde made her way through the thinning crowd. Deciding to mess with the pair further she jumped directly in the blonde's path at the last moment and clamped on like a barnacle. "Fate-chan I missed you soo much!"  
Fate's smile twitched at the intrusive girl and she said "I missed you too Hayate-chan now let me go I want to greet Nanoha."  
When the girl then began to rub her face into her cleavage squealing, "MY FATE-CHAN!" the blonde began to blush, then panicking ripped her off her and none too gently tossed the young Lt Col. into the crowd before turning to her best friend more breathless with her excitement than the tussle.  
"Nanoha, I missed you," she smiled the gentle smile reserved just for her best friend before closing the remaining gap quickly and clasped her in a tight embrace.  
"Uhm I missed you too, so much Fate-chan," then leaned into the hug and breathed in deeply the scent of the girl. An unfamiliar scent of aftershave clung to her and made Nanoha stiffened suddenly, this was not her Fate-chan.  
Fate felt her stiffen and pulled away, looking down at her with concern, "Nanoha are you okay?"  
Then a warmly pitched male voice broke in, "Fate, will you introduce me to your friends?"  
Turning her head at the voice she smiled warmly, "Of course Noir-kun," then stepping aside so one arm held Nanoha around her waist she began her introductions, "Enforcer Noir Vespers it is my pleasure to introduce you to my best friend Captain Takamachi Nanoha."  
The man smiled then bowed gracefully, "It is a great honor to meet you finally Captain Takamaki, Fate speaks highly of you."  
Fate laughed, "No Noir-kun, its Ta~ka~ma~chi, I swear you are as bad as our friend Vita-chan."  
Nanoha felt her eye twitch, she wasn't sure why but she didn't want this man near Fate. Hayate bounced back over at this moment and Fate relented enough to give her a half hug keeping her other arm holding Nanoha snuggly against her side. Fate the introduced Hayate to the man, "Noir-kun this is Lt Col. Yagami Hayate, she is my other best friend, the three of us grew up together, if not for Nanoha here both of us would have been destroyed in magical incidents beyond our control."  
He bowed again and then stood straight to salute her smartly, "It's an honor Lt Col. Yagami."  
Hayate looked over the young man, he must be six foot two maybe three, dwarfing even Fate, broad shoulders and fit looking. His face was strong but friendly, sparkling emerald green eyes smiled at her. "So um Noir-kun?" she asked for permission for the more familiar manner of address to which he smiled a nod, "Thank you, please call me Hayate when it's not official. Um what is your relationship with our dear Fate-chan?"  
His grin widened, "She was my Junior Enforcer during this pass mission, Chrono pulled some strings so we could work together, he wanted someone he trusted to watch out for his little sister. Though she watched out for me more than the other way around, she is a remarkable mage. I can understand why the three of you are known as the Aces."  
Fate blushed, "No, you taught me a lot Noir-kun, besides I couldn't let you get hurt I owe the Scrya clan, Yuuno-kun helped me out nearly as much as Nanoha. I was happy to learn more about your people, I'm afraid I'm not as familiar with Mid-Childa's minority cultures as I should be."  
Hayate blinked, "What do you mean Scrya clan? How are you related to them?"  
The man stepped back then suddenly transformed into a pitch black ferret. Fate picked him up and settled him on her shoulder much as Nanoha used to do with Yuuno. "Noir-kun is very strong in support magic like Yuuno, but did learn some assaultive magic so he is very versatile in the field."  
Suddenly a blonde ferret jumped up onto Fate's other shoulder and the two ferrets began to chitter at each other. Fate laughed again at the two small animals that then jumped off her shoulders and began to chase each other around her feet. "I always wondered what Yuuno-kun would be like with another one of his family around."  
Arf came over and was watching the ferrets now wrestling, tail wiggling as if waiting for an opening to join the fun. Fate saw this and scooped her up, "No Arf, that's how they communicate in that form, they should be allowed to enjoy their reunion as much as the rest of us."  
Hayate snickered, "You seem awfully knowledgeable on the Scrya clan customs now. Are you and Noir-kun dating?"  
Burgundy eyes widened at the ridiculous question, "Of course not! He's my superior officer and besides I'm already in love with someone else."  
Nanoha felt the knot in her stomach loosen a bit at the adamant reply, 'but who is Fate really in love with? Could Hayate be right, is it me after all?' Chrono came over and tried to kick at the pair of scurrying animals, "Stupid ferrets."  
Fate smiled at her brother, "Be nice Onii-kun, they deserve a chance to let loose."  
"Hmm, well don't get too loose with Noir, are you sure it's okay for him to stay with you during your leave?" Chrono asked in a gruff brotherly tone.  
"It's fine, we shared quarters on ship, this will be no different except we'll have more room. He's like Yuuno-kun and likes to sleep in his ferret form and uses the rest of his allotted space as working space," she replied nonchalantly.  
Nanoha felt the knot tighten again, "Fate-chan you're going to stay in your dorm? I thought you were going to stay with me again?"  
Fate grimaced, "I'd really like to but I can't, I have some work to finish up so it'll be easier to stay in my dorm with Arf and the guys."  
"Whoa-whoa!" Hayate held up a hand, "What do you mean guys?"  
"Oh Yuuno-kun will be bunking with us, like I said they're going to be "ferreting" at night so it's not like it's going to be crowded. I'm used to sleeping with Arf so we'll take my bunk and the boys will take the second bunk. From there we can go to the Infinity Library to finish the research we need to do," the blonde replied with a hint of confusion, unsure why her friend was making such a big deal.  
Hayate looked from Chrono to Nanoha trying to determine if either were going to protest, when neither did so she decided she had to at least make an effort. "Fate-chan, it really isn't proper for a young woman to be staying with two single men, Arf isn't much of a chaperon, I mean come on she helped us get drunk after basic training graduation."  
"What are you trying to say Hayate? Neither of the Scrya males will do anything to me, I trust them both. Besides I have many times more magic than either of them and could whip them in a fight so even if they tried I'd beat them into ferret ground meat patties and serve them to Arf for dinner. They both know that," Fate's tone left no doubt that there would be no hanky-panky going on.  
Chrono tried to restrain his guffaws of laugher at the thought of the ferrets being struck down with a Thunder Rage if the rascally creatures annoyed her sufficiently. "Don't worry Hayate-san I will be checking up on them, at random. I trust both the fur balls but better to be safe than sorry."  
Snorting dryly at her brother's overprotective nature she then handed him Arf. Fate then came over to Nanoha again, placing her hands on her shoulders, "We are all going to go out to eat, will you join us? I really want to spend as much time as possible with you while I'm home. Depending on what we find we may have to go out again soon."  
Sapphire eyes looked into the burgundy eyes she loved most and smiled, "Of course Fate-chan, Hayate-chan got us both the afternoon off so we could spend the day with you."  
"Good," then caught Nanoha's right hand in her left, "it's lucky you're a lefty, I won't have to let go even we when have to eat. I fear you're going to get tired of having me around with how clingy I'm going to be."  
Giggling, "Nope Fate-chan will be the one to get tired first," then intertwined their fingers together and pulled her towards the bored looking Lindy so she could muster the troops for lunch.  
Coming up to the teal haired woman Nanoha gave her a bright smile, "Hello Admiral Lindy it's good to see you again."  
The older woman smiled back looking at the tight grip between the two girls. "It's nice to see you again Nanoha, it's also good to see you are still keeping a tight leash on my daughter, the gods only knows what kind of trouble she'd get into if she was left in Hayate's care."  
Hayate pouting blushed and the others laughed, all familiar with her rather outrageous sense of humor.  
~"~"~  
With the ferret boys,' as Fate liked to think of the cousins in her head, Chrono-nii really was a bad influence sometimes, help the final documentation and planning for the next phase of their mission was completed within a week. Their plan had been filed and was now undergoing review, they might have their answer in a week or a month, god bless bureaucracy, so the group was now enjoying some down time. Nanoha wanted to spend time with her best friend but as she had a new group of trainees to teach she couldn't take any time off. Fate missing her friend offered to come and put on a sparring match with Signum so the recruits could see how dangerous it was to slack off in their training. Nanoha had jumped at the offer, that meant the black rat wouldn't be with her.  
When Fate arrived that morning she had two ferrets on her shoulders, and no Signum was in sight. Nanoha's smile was weakened when she saw the cousins riding on her Fate and came to greet her trying to muster as much good cheer as she could. "Good morning Fate-chan! Hi Yuuno-kun, Noir-san, are you joining us today?"  
The pair of ferrets on Fate's shoulders greeted her telepathically.  
Yuuno with a chipper, "Good morning Nanoha-chan."  
The black rat replied, "Good morning Nunoho."  
Fate heard the mispronunciation and winced, "Ne Noir-kun, how many times do I have to tell you, Na-No-Ha."  
The rodent just shrugged and began to groom himself, Fate slit her eyes at him and he grudgingly looked at Nanoha, "Good Morning Na-No-Ha-san, it's good to see you again. I hope we can all work well together today."  
Fate then turned smiling awkwardly back to Nanoha rubbing the back of her neck nervously, "Ah Signum called me this morning to cancel she had an emergency mission so I was hoping we could put on the sparring match instead. The guys are offering to provide support for both of us, two on two to show how a good partnership covers each others' weaknesses. Yuuno and you fight together as well as we do together and I'm used to working with Noir-kun so it should be fairly well matched."  
Nanoha's stomach began to roll, "So it'd be you and Noir-san versus Yuuno-kun and me?"  
The rat gave her a cheeky grin from Fate's shoulder running his paws through her hair. Fate distractedly patted his paw away, "Yeah, if we teamed up we'd blow them up into little pieces of ferret jerky as Chrono-nii likes to point out," she laughed at this idea and the ferrets jumped off her at the affront.  
'Not a bad idea,' Nanoha thought blackly. "Um okay, that will work, let's get set up," she agreed with false cheer.  
From behind her popped up Hayate, "Oh good you have already agreed to the little match, let's see if the White Devil team can take out the Black Angel team."  
The match only lasted five minutes but it had to be said they were the most terrifying five minutes of everyone there's lives. It having ended with a fivefold Starlight Breaker which somehow encompassed both the support mages and Fate when she moved into range to protect them from the gathering blast of energy. Nanoha's temper had been triggered when the black ferret had begun taking liberties with Fate's person, crawling on her in ways that did not seem justified in her jealousy clouded mind. Finally breaking through his barrier with a Divine Buster flinging him across the field near his cousin who was fast becoming a traitor in her mind with how much he was supporting the FatexNoir coupling. When the smoke and debris settled Nanoha saw the tattered remains of Fate's barrier jacket and was guilt stricken (and secretly enticed) leaving her standing alone on the field speechless.  
Climbing to her feet and deactivating her device Fate returned to her training uniform and came over to Nanoha laughing, "Still the same, it's always Full Power Full Throttle, it's a good thing I've grown nearly impervious to your magic. Nearly seven years of failing to dodge that insane move of yours and not dying has nearly made me immortal."  
Pulling Nanoha into a hug she pressed their foreheads together, "But you really need to learn to hold back, Yuuno-kun and Noir-kun could have been seriously hurt. I was joking earlier about turning them into ferret jerky Nanoha," seeing the girl blush she sighed with resignation as she pulled away placing a soft kiss on her forehead.  
"Now, now Fate-chan no lovey-dovey stuff on the practice field, not unless you plan on sharing with more than just Nanoha-chan. If that's going to be the case then rest of us would like to get in line, I know me and Noir-kun would love to cuddle up and get to know your softer side better," the midget Lt Col joked then ran once she saw the twin looks of disapproval shooting death glares at her.  
~"~"~  
Nanoha had been training new recruits all morning but was distracted thinking of where she'd rather be at that very moment. Fate had been home for a fortnight and other than the disastrous impromptu sparring match, a few "family" meals and telepathic conversations they hadn't spent any time together. Right now she knew Fate's group was awaiting further orders, so she was taking it easy in her dorm and goofing off occasionally with her family and the ferrets. She wanted to be there, sitting on the couch with Fate's head in her lap watching TV. Or better yet take a nice nap with her favorite blonde body pillow.  
Noir in Nanoha's opinion was getting way too familiar with Fate, she came over one morning to make breakfast for her best friend with Lindy and Fate had opened the door wearing a in a pair of faded yoga pants and a t-shirt. She also had a totally unnecessary accessory in a black ferret riding on her shoulder, it had been playing with her hair. It had taken all of her self control not to snatch the parasite off Fate's shoulder and fling it against wall bashing its little interloper brains out.  
Nanoha had never experience these kinds of feelings, oh she never liked sharing Fate with others but she was always the first person to push Fate into doing things on her own and making new friends. Fate was really coming into her own, she was the talk of the NCO club, lots of men and women were interested in the young and upcoming Ace of the Navy. This past year alone she had really filled out and was voted behind the scenes as the hottest female in the Naval branch of the TSAB. It made Nanoha feel more than a hint of pride to know the hottest girl in the Navy preferred to hang out with her versus one of her multitude of admirers.  
Yet at this moment she was standing in mid-air watching her recruits slog through the mud and avoid being shot down by her training drones and her randomly shot Divine Shooters (just to keep them on their toes) instead of being where she wanted to be. She ignored the chill she was feeling and sniffled before wiping her nose with a handkerchief. Vita came over to her, enclosed in a protective bubble to keep herself dry, "Damn it Nanoha-chan are you trying to make yourself sick?!"  
"It's too hard to catch everything they do with the bubble, besides I never get sick." The last bit came out hoarsely and she began to cough to clear her throat.  
"Get the hell out of here, get a warm shower and then into some warm dry clothes, I'll take care of the babies." The short red head groused at Nanoha.  
Smiling at the kind offer and more than willing to take it, she leaned over and hugged the diminutive woman quickly, "Thanks Vita-chan, you're the best," then took off before she could try to hit her with her hammer.  
~"~"~  
Nanoha did as she was told and was now making her way to Fate's dorm and saw her other best friend sitting outside the door with her ear stuck to the door to listen into the conversation going on inside. Opening a telepathic link with the troublesome short haired brunette, "Ne Hayate-chan what do you think you're doing?"  
The girl twitched and looked up at the unamused look on Nanoha's face, smiled sheepishly before responding through their connection, "They're talking about families and romantic prospects."  
"They?" Nanoha felt her eye begin to twitch again, 'didn't he ever leave Fate alone for a minute.'  
"Fate and her harem," Hayate replied mockingly.  
"Hmm who's in there with her exactly?" she asked, her fists tightened to the point of her nails digging into her palms.  
"The ferret twins, Chrono, and Zafira with Arf in their puppy forms, apparently Noir-kun is interested in their makeup as they transform like the Scryas naturally," she answered honestly as she could see Nanoha was about two seconds from finally snapping and she didn't have her camera.  
Then she heard Noir's voice again, "Oh shush it's getting good, come here and listen."  
Torn over wanting to learn more about the Fate never with her and wanting to give her friend her privacy she finally relented to the temptation and quietly sunk to the ground next to Hayate and pressed her ear to the door.  
~"~"~  
"Sir, Lady Nanoha is outside the door now with Mistress Hayate shall I open the door now?" Bardiche reported telepathically to his master.  
Fate knew exactly when her nosey friend had started her spying and as such had allowed the topics to range onto ones she knew would make her foam at the mouth in excitement. But now Nanoha was outside and she didn't want her to have any misunderstanding when it came to her own feelings. Just as silently she replied, "Thank you Bardiche no, hold off opening the door this may give me a chance to finally get my intensions clear to her."  
"Very good Sir, I have requested Lady Raising Heart to not alert her mistress of our knowledge and she has consented." The mechanical male voice replied in her mind.  
The smile on her face caught Noir's attention, "Fate, are you okay? Talking to your friend again?"  
Giving a small shake of her head to clear it, "No, I was just thinking about family, what it really means, you are very lucky to have a sister, I was created in a hope of reviving my dead sister but in the end I was left behind. If not for Lindy-oka and Chrono-nii I would never have gotten to enjoy the experience of having a warm loving family of my own growing up."  
Chrono blushed, as much as he loved his adopted sister it still was embarrassing to be addressed with the familial suffix in front of others. Fate saw the blush and blushed herself, they both were so reserved normally that these little moments of familial intimacy always caught her off guard, Nanoha really was having an effect on her, she could say the things in her heart so much easier now.  
"Well if you marry a man with a sister you'll automatically inherit a sister," Yuuno pointed out in hopes of directing Fate's attention to his cousin and his obvious amorous affection.  
"No, I won't ever be marrying a man, my preferences lay in a different direction, you know that very well Yuuno-kun." She couldn't help raising an eyebrow at him as if to say, 'are you being stupid on purpose?'  
Hoping to divert the conversation which was now becoming strained as Noir worked out what Fate's words meant, Arf broken in, "Fate-chan already has sisters, sisters-in-arms like Signum."  
"That's true Arf but I can't really treat her like I would a real sister, she is too imposing, I respect her too greatly to try to get too familiar with her. It would be kinda awkward if we suddenly started getting huggy and used pet names for each other."  
Giving her master a canine grin, "I thought you two already did that, she calls you Testarossa when no one else does and when you two are sparring you can get pretty physical grappling with each other."  
Fate flicked a tufted ear and shook her head, "That's a very loose interpretation of the facts."  
Fate then turned to the blue wolf pup sitting on her brother's lap that had barked a laugh, Zafira immediately saw the unamused look and began to cough-bark to cover up his indiscretion. Chrono seeing his sister's face immediately ejected the pup from his lap, if his sister was going to zap someone he didn't plan on being collateral damage. Fate's look of annoyance broke into laughter at the yelp from the blue pup at the sudden fall, seeing her relax he decided to further distract her by offering up another potential sister candidate, "What about Hayate-chan, you two seem pretty close, you have no problem hugging and all that."  
"Hmm, I guess but I don't know, she's such a pervert sometimes, I'd feel even more uncomfortable with the idea of her as a sibling then I did originally with you Chrono-kun, the whole "fufufu little-sister-but-not-related-by-blood-moe" thing she'd probably pull. It's bad enough she likes to grope me as it is, I'm not sure what it'd be like to have to live with her." Her mind began to drift and she shuddered.  
The rest of the close knit group laughed at this and Zafira took the opportunity to jump back on Chrono's lap.  
~"~"~Meanwhile outside  
Nanoha was trying her best to glare angrily and not laugh at the same time. The outraged look on Hayate's face at being called a pervert and the accusation of her probable attempts on Fate's virtue if they lived together, making it hard for her to restrain her laughter. But she also had to glare at her friend, how dare she grope her Fate, she was not communal property damn it, if anyone was going to be grabbing bits of Fate it would be her.  
~"~"~Back inside  
Noir looked at the blonde hard and questioned, "What about that girl you are always talking about Nanaha?"  
Fate gave him a sharp eyed look, "It's Na~no~ha, I have told how to say it correctly enough times now, Noir-kun please make the effort to remember her name correctly she is my most important person."  
"So she's the most like a sister to you then?" he asked with a tone of hopeful denial, he really didn't want to believe the rumors and innuendo.  
"No, she is nothing like a sister to me, I'm in love with her," the statement was made with no hesitation.  
The black haired man was taken aback, "Oh so you two really are a couple?"  
A delicate long fingered hand rubbed at Fate's forehead, "No, I want that but she doesn't take me seriously. But one day maybe, that's my goal."  
He tried to convince Fate smoothly, "If she doesn't take your feelings seriously don't you think it'd be better to be with someone who could return your feelings properly. You are a wonderful young woman and shouldn't have to waste your time and affections on someone who doesn't realize your worth."  
Fate stood up suddenly angry, "She does recognize my worth, she saved me from myself, she saw me as an individual and not merely as a defective copy when all I wanted to do was earn my insane maker's affection. She taught me what it means to be a friend. I owe her everything, anything good and wholesome in my life now is a direct result of her reaching out to me when no one else cared."  
"Fate calm down, besides from the sound of it you are you are confusing gratitude and your feelings of indebtedness to this girl with love. You shouldn't feel like you have to give yourself to her just because she helped you in the past." Noir again tried to smoothly convince her.  
The girl laughed bitterly, "If that was the case then I'd feel just as indebted to Yuuno-kun. When I was stuck on the Asura during my trial he was with me, became my second true friend. He helped me prepare my defense as much as the Harlaowns, he gave me his attention and friendship with the same open-heartedness as Nanoha. But I don't feel anything more than friendship for him. When Nanoha was nearly killed I nearly died inside, she is my light, not because I owe her anything but because of everything she gives to me. Everyday knowing she is in the world gives me the strength to do my best. I don't feel like I have to earn her love, she gives it freely. She has always let me know I am cared for, that I am not alone anymore. I just want more, I want her to be my girlfriend and someday my wife."  
Making one final push to make Fate realize what she was saying, "So then you are attracted to her physically, you want to have sex with her? That's what married couples do, or are you so self deluded that you want hide behind your so-called deep emotional connection that you have forgotten what it really means to be in a romantic relationship."  
"Yes, I want to have sex with her, I want to touch her and kiss her and do all the other things couples do. I am not ashamed of wanting her, of being a lesbian. Here on Mid being a lesbian isn't as big a deal as being a clone, if Nanoha has no problem with either aspect of me then what's the problem?" Fate replied steadily despite the growing warmth in her cheeks.  
"Then what about me, if you didn't have feelings for me then why all this?" he asked in a hurt tone to take in their living arrangements. "What about that kiss? Didn't that mean anything to you?"  
Really angry now, "That wasn't a kiss! I gave you mouth to mouth resuscitation, only a five year old would confuse that with a real kiss. As for you staying here I offered as a courtesy, I thought we were friends, this kind of thing is what friends do for each other in my experience. If you somehow deluded yourself into believing there was anything else going on that's not my fault. I never once lied about my preferences or gave you a reason to think I wanted more than friendship."  
"You conniving little bitch!" he yelled back from his wounded pride.  
Suddenly four very angry people were standing between him and Fate. The first to open fire on him was his own cousin, "Noir, when I first heard you were coming back to Mid with Fate I was happy, you were one of my only friends growing up then you left to join the service and I was alone. I wanted you to be happy and thought that maybe if I gave you some support you could make Fate happy, seeing how oblivious Nanoha is to her feelings I thought it at least couldn't hurt. But I realized something in the past two weeks that I never wanted to admit, you are an arrogant brat, you always had to have things your own way. So the girl you like doesn't like you back and you decide to curse her and throw a tantrum like the five year old she called you. You don't deserve Fate and never will."  
The black haired man was gaping at his cousin, his normally cool suave face now flushed red and not at all handsome. The two familiars were cracking their knuckles and getting ready to demonstrate what happens to people who insult their friend/family. But Chrono stepped forward first, and punched him in the face knocking him back onto the couch before letting out the rest of his anger in words, "You really are a weasel Noir, I made allowances for some of the things you pulled on me during our academy days since we were so young and your record was so impressive. But you better believe I will never allow anyone talk to my sister that way. You get the hell out of this dorm, out of our lives, I'll be seeing to it that you are never in the same time-space as my sister again."  
The man stood up went to his side of the room and gathered his things as quickly as possible and was getting ready to storm out when the door flashed open and a very irate looking Nanoha was standing in his way. For the second time he was struck by a Divine Buster, but this time he had no shield ready and worse, no one moved to save him.  
~"~"~  
Fate's dorm was pretty much destroyed by the resulting blast of magical energy, though everyone but Noir was fine thankfully. The blonde had to find temporary housing in the meantime and that meant either staying with Chrono and his family or Nanoha, it was a very easy decision to make. Settling onto the couch in Nanoha's room she leaned her head back and shut her eyes. Nanoha was nervously standing over the girl, she had heard everything of course and now wanted to confirm her own feelings for Fate.  
Edging closer and settling next to Fate on the couch she called out softly, "Ne Fate-chan, can we talk?"  
The blonde could feel the nervousness of her best friend, 'silly girl,' was all she could think so when she called out to her she decided to tease her a little to break the tension. "Hmm, yes Nanoha," she replied sleepily without opening her eyes.  
"I want to tell you something, um it's really important so could you look at me?"  
Fate instead snuggled in deeper into the couch before snaking out an arm to capture Nanoha around the waist and pull her into her lap. Wriggling her around until she laying across her lap and was tucked into her arms, "Um much better, what did you want to talk about?"  
The auburn haired girl was beet red having made a number of embarrassing squeaking noises as Fate pulled and poked her into place. Looking up into the serenely still face with eyes still shut she pouted, "Mou Fate-chan, I was being serious!"  
The girl went to hit her friend on the top of her head but the hand was caught and pulled to the blonde's mouth where a gentle kiss was placed on each knuckle before it was turned over and another was placed on the sensitive skin of her wrist. Gasping, "Fate-chan, don't…I…we need to talk."  
Fate finally opened her eyes, "Mmm, what is it Nanoha? I'm listening."  
There was an explosion of butterflies in Nanoha's stomach at the warmth in those burgundy eyes, "Oh," was all she could say before the blonde moved in and sealed her mouth with a gentle kiss.  
Fate had seen the flushed look of desire on her best friend's face when she opened her eyes, those few gentle kisses having finally awoken something in Nanoha, unable to restrain herself any longer she moved in to finally claim the lips of her love. Her lips were soft and tasted so sweet, that Fate tightened her hold on the girl bringing her closer. Nanoha in return slid her arms around her neck and pulled her down with equal vigor. When they finally came up for air Nanoha was laying on her back on the couch with Fate hovering over her, foreheads pressed together as the panted to catch their breath.  
"You will be my girlfriend now won't you?" Fate asked in a breathless voice.  
Nanoha was stunned, this was going far easier than she imagined but all the same she had to say her piece, "Uhm, yes of course, but Fate-chan you aren't being fair."  
A fine blonde eyebrow went up, "Oh, I thought I was being fair, I gave you a chance to speak but all you did was entice me into kissing you."  
Sapphire eyes flashed with consternation, "I did not! You kissed me before I had a chance to say anything."  
Fate merely smiled, then leaned in once more to kiss the girl senseless, far too much time had been wasted and was being wasted in useless words. At first her plan seemed to be working then she found them being rolled off the couch and she landed on the carpeted floor hard with a triumphed Nanoha sitting on top of her. The sapphire eyed girl then caught her arms in a bind over her head, "Now are you ready to listen or do I have to teach you how to listen properly?"  
Gulping the blonde girl nodded. Suppressing her cat that ate the canary smile Nanoha began, "Fate-chan, I really sorry I never took your confessions before seriously, I can't imagine how much that hurt you. I was so scared of losing you as a friend especially after my accident, I don't know what I'd do without you by my side. When you left for your mission I was really nervous and the longer you were away the harder it became to keep all my feelings under control. So I decided I was finally going to take up your offer of dating, I didn't want to lose you to anyone else, but when you came home you had that ferret with you…"  
Nanoha was interrupted by Fate's laughter at that line.  
"What?! Your brother calls Yuuno-kun that all the time and you don't laugh."  
"Um yeah but it's the tone of voice and because it's you. Were you really jealous of Vespers?"  
"Ugh! It went beyond jealousy, I was daydreaming of ways of destroying him, I don't like other people touching you let alone crawling all over you in that so not innocent guise of a ferret."  
"Ha-ha, I can understand that, I was really confused as to why I would get angry with Yuuno-kun when we were younger, he's a great friend but whenever I saw him looking all cute and fluffy riding on your shoulder I wanted to blast him."  
"Mou Fate-chan if you knew how painful it can be to see that then why did you let it do that?"  
"I never thought you'd be jealous, I thought you understood how much I love you and that no one else could ever replace you in my heart. When I was younger I was so scared of losing you to someone else, I never felt worthy of being your friend. But you made me see that no matter what you'd always be there for me and I stopped worrying. I'm sorry I hurt you Nanoha that was never my intention."  
Fate then tugged on the bind breaking it then took Nanoha's hands in hers, "I love you, you are the only person in the multiverse I can see myself with."  
"I love you too Fate-chan, no matter what happens in the future you are the only one I want to be with."  
Smiling Fate pulled her back down for another kiss, life was perfect.


	2. Chapter Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Still settling into their new relationship Nanoha now has to deal with all the new insecurities being Fate's girlfriend brings.

Unfortunately Chrono would have been unable to remove Vespers from being Fate's senior Enforcer. Fortunately the physical damage he took as a result of Nanoha's tantrum was significant enough to have him removed from active duty for quite some time. But Fate now had the problem of finding a replacement senior who wouldn't run screaming when the position was offered. The mission to secure the lost logia on Alpha Hamal had to be completed and now that they had sufficient knowledge on how to secure it properly they needed to get back into space.  
Chrono went to every old friend he had within the Enforcers and got mostly polite refusals but occasionally someone would flat out tell him they wouldn't work with the White Devil's lover if it meant they would be on the receiving end of her wrath if she felt they had somehow insulted her girlfriend. Fate's potential career as an Enforcer was now at a standstill, she had to complete her apprenticeship otherwise she'd have to find another career path.  
"Hey Admiral Christos, hey wait up!" an increasingly desperate Chrono called out to squat man of sixty.  
The man turned and seeing the young admiral stopped with a grin, "'ello Chrono me boy, how can aye be of service to ya?"  
Huffing he pleaded with the older man, "I need a favor, it's for my sister Fate."  
The old man's smile faded, "Aye heard about the rumpus that girly of 'ers caused. Aye take it yer looking fir a replacement partner fir 'er."  
"Yes sir, I was hoping you might be willing, I know you are technically retired from field service but you're my last hope."  
"Hmm, Aye'd like to help ya if aye could but the medics won't let out of the building anymore. But aye do know of another girly who might help ya. 'er name is Blanca Weathers, top notch gal, aye don't think even yer White Devil gal could spook 'er. Tell 'er aye recommended 'er fir the job and she'll take it."  
"Thank you sir, I will. You have no idea how much this means to me and my family," a jubilant Chrono saluted the old man then set off to find his best last hope.  
~"~"~  
Nanoha learning what her actions had caused was guilt stricken once more, and was worried Fate was going to start to hate her for what she had brought upon her. It was bad enough her injuries had led to Fate failing her Enforcers exam two times due to her concentrating all her attention on helping her recover, now once again she was getting in the way of her dreams. Fate listened to her brother and couldn't help feeling slightly annoyed with how cowardly these so called elite mages were being, really to be scared to work with her over a slightly temperamental sixteen year old girl?  
Fate was lounging on Nanoha's couch waiting for the girl to come off duty so they could go out to eat, she wasn't really worried about her future career, she knew one way or the other she'd complete her apprenticeship even if Chrono-nii and Lindy-oka had to dig some fossil out of a closet in headquarters to monitor her from the ship. It wasn't like she needed the extra magical power or even the hands on supervision anymore, hell the last two proctors she'd had before Vespers depended on her even more than he had.  
Nanoha came into the room and found Fate dozing on her couch, dressed in a delicious outfit of civilian clothing. Her stomach did flip flops every time she opened her door and found the blonde still there, how soon would it be before she decided being with her wasn't worth it. Leaning over the back of the couch she pressed a soft kiss on her lips, trying to imprint the feeling into mind and soul before she lost this most precious privilege. Feeling the kiss Fate's mouth twitched into a smile and a hand went up to trail through soft auburn hair.  
Pulling away Nanoha whispered, "I'm sorry I'm so late training went over, do you still want to go out or would you rather stay in, I can cook for us?"  
Fate could see the stress and uneasiness in Nanoha's face and eyes sighed, "Nanoha, come here. Sit with me for a bit."  
The girl stiffened at the words, 'oh god this is too soon, I wanted to at least make love to her once,' her lustful mind thought morosely. "Okay," she nearly whimpered coming around the couch she sat at the far end of the couch from her girlfriend.  
Seeing Nanoha so guilt ridden and distant from her made Fate growl, leaning over she pulled the girl over to her and placed her on her lap. Anger flashed in Fate's eyes when Nanoha tried to pull away, tightening her hold she then pressed her mouth to hers in a hard and possessive kiss. When she finally felt Nanoha relax and respond she loosened her hold and brushed her thumb across her cheek to brush away the tears now flowing. Pulling away she sighed and pressed her forehead to hers, "Nanoha, please stop this, I love you, nothing is ever going to change that."  
Sobbing now she pressed her face into the crook of Fate's neck holding her tightly as the blonde rubbed her back soothingly. Calming a bit she hiccupped, "I sorry Fate-chan, I'm so sorry, I keep messing up things for you. I don't deserve you."  
"Takamachi Nanoha don't you ever say that again! I swear to god I will spank you if I ever hear those words again," Fate said in her sternest voice pulling the girl's face away from her neck so they could look into each eyes.  
There was no recrimination, no doubts in her beautiful burgundy eyes, just a fierce determination and soul searing love. Nanoha felt the lead weight on her heart shift then fall away, smiling brilliantly before leaning in to properly reciprocate her love. The kiss grew heated quickly as Fate's hands roamed up and down her back, gliding over her taut bottom, pulling her flush to her body, gasping, "I love you Nanoha, please don't ever doubt that."  
Nanoha began to kiss and nip at Fate's jaw then down her porcelain neck, sucking at the pulse point until a red mark formed, claiming Fate for all to see then pulled away to give the bruised skin a soothing lick and declare haughtily in the blonde's ear, "Mine."  
The blonde groaned at the pressure and word then decided to take things up a notch sliding her hands forward to begin unbuttoning the thick uniform jacket keeping her from Nanoha's delicious form. Feeling the jacket come undone Nanoha shucked it off quickly then ripped her button up shirt and under shirt off without even trying to undo a single button, the rough sound of fabric tearing could be heard.  
Seeing the lacy orange bra that complimented the strawberries and cream complexion of her lover burgundy eyes darkened with desire. Undoing the clasp and pushing away the offending fabric she took hold of the full breasts in her hands and began to tease and massage the tender flesh. Cute little mewling noises escaped Nanoha's throat as Fate clamped her mouth onto one and began to suckle the nipple passionately.  
Nanoha felt like she was about to come apart at the seams, thrusting her hips into Fate's as the pleasure built to an unbearable pitch. Holding the blonde head tight to her chest she tried to beg, "Please, please Fate-chan, ah…I need…"  
Hearing the desperation makes the blonde smile, she has wanted to make love to Nanoha for years and now that they are together it should have happened well before tonight but every time they had started getting in the mood something interrupted them. Calls they had to take, visitors who couldn't be ignored (damn Hayate) then the guilt over the Vespers rumpus began to take a toll on Nanoha and she would stiffen as if she was unsure about the rightness of them being together. NO more, Fate moved her hands on Nanoha's waist then stood up with her held tight to her by the hips. Feeling herself being lifted Nanoha wrapped her legs around Fate allowing her to carry her to the bedroom. The full sized bed beckoned and Fate gently settled her Nanoha on the edge and went to her knees to finish undressing her lover.  
Discarding skirt and panties at once then pulling Nanoha's legs apart so she could finally reach her prize, Fate stared at the glistening flower dripping nectar. Dipping her head to taste, first with a tentative lick eliciting a sigh and shiver, emboldened Fate slipped her tongue through her folds lapping up the sweetness. Nanoha's hips immediately began bucking and her hands fisted the sheets, she wanted this for so long, had dreamed of this. In a daze Nanoha moaned her lover's name over and over, begging for more, begging for her to not stop, urging her lover on. Fate redoubles her action finding the hard nub of pleasure and licked around it before sucking it into her mouth with a hard pull. Nanoha screamed and came hard with a rush of fluid.  
Fate lapped at her clenching opening drinking in her sweetness starting Nanoha on her way to her next sexual peak. Once finished she pulled back and began to slid her fingers up and down the wet slit, teasing the engorged flesh. Dipping her fingers into her opening gently first shallowly then progressively deeper as Nanoha growled, "Don't tease me!"  
Pushing her hand forward fast and hard she broke through the barrier blocking her way. The gasp of pain made Fate stop and nearly pull out but Nanoha sat up and caught her hand, "Don't stop, I need you inside me. Please keep going."  
Looking into the sapphire eyes she'd die for and seeing the need and love there she stood up to catch her lips in a hard kiss before pumping her fingers in and out bringing her little devil to her second climax. When Nanoha came down from her second high she saw Fate sitting on the bed looking down at her still fully dressed and with a smug look on her face. The blonde's smirk widened at the pouting look on Nanoha's face, "Something wrong Nano-love? I think we should get…um dressed for dinner, it's getting late."  
Growling, "Not fair Fate-chan, I didn't even get to touch you!"  
Leaning over the auburn haired beauty to kiss her then whispered, "Oh and what's stopping you from touching me?"  
Nanoha suddenly shy in the face of Fate's boldness asked quietly, "May I touch you?"  
Seeing the hesitation Fate sighed before kissing her once more then said huskily, "I belong to you, all of me. You can touch me anytime you want…" then smiling naughtily, "wherever you want."  
~"~"~  
Fate awoke at six am when a call came in from her brother, rubbing sleep from her eyes she was about to answer the call when she felt a draft. Looking down the actions of the night before flooded her mind and turned her a remarkable shade of red. Gripping the sheet she began to frantically search the surrounding area of the bed for her clothing. The chirping noise of the call and the tossing of the bed awoke Nanoha who opened her eyes to the very naked back of her lover. Nanoha immediately sent the call to voicemail and pounced on her prey.  
Feeling the very warm, not to mention very naked body of Nanoha pressing against her back nearly made Fate fall off the bed with a nose bleed. It was one thing to do things in the darkened room at night but the room was now bright and any number of people would be looking for them if they didn't get out of bed soon. Stammering, "Na…na…nanoha, please we need to get dressed."  
The only response she got was the feeling of lips pressing to the hollow of her neck and kissing her before the delightful mouth opened to bite the sensitive skin. She moaned at the touch and felt soft hands run up her sides then grasp her breasts tenderly. No longer able to hold herself up on her elbow she collapsed back onto the bed giving her predator more scope for her attack. She was so far gone after a few more nips and kisses she didn't even bother to try to wonder why her brother had tried to call her at such an ungodly hour on a weekend.  
~"~"~  
Two hours later they found out rather rudely when a brusque woman of twenty began knocking loudly and insistently on Nanoha's door. Pulling on clothes quickly the pair stumbled out of the bed and pushing her hair out of her face Fate opened the door. The woman at the door was of middle height, stood ramrod straight, her full figure dressed impeccably in the black uniform of an Enforcer.  
Steel grey eyes took in the rumpled appearance of the two young women before her and in a coolly professional voice asked, "Which of you is Fate T Harlaown?"  
Fate swallowed hard, the woman was more imposing then Signum and she suddenly felt like the nine year old girl she had been when she had first faced off with that Amazon. Clearing her voice, "I am, ma'am."  
The woman looked her over as if she had seen better Enforcer candidates under her boot. "Well Junior Enforcer Harlaown why are you not ready for duty? I had your brother call you to inform you of my arrival."  
"Uh, uh I slept through the call ma'am, I'm sorry. If you'll just give me ten minutes I'll be ready to go," Fate said timidly.  
The woman nodded her white blonde head and Fate fled to the bedroom for the fastest wash up and dressing known to man. Nanoha looked over the woman and was quietly impressed, she sure as hell knew how to get a person moving. In an effort of friendliness she offered, "Good morning, I'm Takamachi Nanoha, can I get you a cup of coffee or something to eat?"  
The woman looked her up and down before replying flatly, "No thank you Cpt. Takamachi, we have to be in a meeting with senior staff in," looking down at her watch, "twenty minutes."  
Fate came out of the bedroom a few minutes later apparently having used her sonic moves to get through her morning ablutions in record time. She also had taken the time to also listen to her brother's message and was now looking at the woman warily.  
"Junior Enforcer Harlaown ready for duty Enforcer Weathers," she said smartly before saluting her.  
"Very good, at least I know now you're fast. Let's go we have work to do," the woman nodded her farewell to Nanoha and turned on her heel to walk out the door.  
Fate gave Nanoha a fleeting kiss on the cheek and rushed off after the woman without saying a word.  
~"~"~  
Fate didn't return to the dorm that night, nor did she answer any of the calls Nanoha made. The next day when Fate wasn't home by dinner time she tried to open a telepathic link and found no response, this was a first, if Fate was still on planet she should still be able to reach her. In desperation she called Chrono and when Amy answered instead she decided to ask anyway, "Hi Amy-san, I was wondering if you know where Fate-chan is? I haven't seen her since her new senior came to get her yesterday morning and none of my calls are getting through."  
Amy gave her a pained look, "Uh I take it that you don't know then, she left on the Aquila this morning. That woman is a terror, Enforcer Weathers I mean, I swear she is the biggest hardass I've ever met, and I've met quite a few."  
Shocked, "What! How…how…um I thought there was more planning needed and supplies to be loaded. Fate-chan didn't even come back for her stuff, what will she do without her duffel?"  
"Oh once it was known Wonder Woman was involved everyone became remarkably streamlined and efficient. I swear I have never seen anyone frighten people the way she does, she makes your White Devil mode look like a hissing kitten. And she's like that 24-7, remarkable," Amy said shaking her head.  
Chrono stepped into view and seeing Nanoha gave her a sympathetic smile, "Hey Nanoha-chan, sorry about not getting to you earlier I was down at the dock and hustling like mad to finalize everything, they didn't even have final approval before they pulled out, as soon as Admiral St Claire knew that woman was going to be aboard he pulled up stakes. Muttered something about the faster they got there the faster they could get back. I really didn't know what I was getting into when I requested Weathers cover for Vespers, I almost wish he wasn't in a full body cast now."  
Rubbing her head Nanoha could only agree, they shared a few more bits of information and scurrilous gossip about the Enforcer now in charge of Fate's final apprenticeship mission. Nanoha went to sleep that night fearful in a whole new way, she wasn't scared Fate would fall for this women but she was afraid that she might break her. Snuggling into Fate's pillow to breath in her faint scent she tried to push all the terrifying thoughts of that woman squashing Fate's growing self confidence under her insanely high level of expectations, much like another woman had seven years ago.  
~"~"~  
Fate was running for her life, how the hell a woman classed three mage ranks below her could have her on the ropes so easily was beyond her understanding. Even sparring with Signum wasn't this hard, she couldn't understand how she was able to avoid her spells, break her strongest binds and then fling powerful bombardment spells back at her with the ferocity she had only ever seen from Nanoha.  
When the bell chimed ending this round she nearly collapsed on the ground in sheer relief, using Bardiche as a crutch she made her way to the benches and sank down gratefully. The tow headed woman came over and sat down next her, there was no smugness on her face, it was just as impassive as it had been throughout their spar. "Enforcer Weathers how do you do it? I haven't seen anyone as good as you, why aren't you the "Ace of the Navy," I sure as hell don't think I would last long in a real battle with you."  
The woman laughed hollowly, "That's because you are a real mage, I am what they call a witch. I use much of the same skills as mages but the foundation of my magical use is different. As for fighting against mages I've developed a way to collect the spent mana of mages and turn it against them, much like your girlfriend's Starlight Breaker."  
Fate blinked in wonderment, "You're really a witch? My god I didn't think there were any left, your magical linage was nearly destroyed in the Saint Kaiser's Wars. Would you be willing to talk with one of my friends when we get back he'll want to interview you for the Infinity Library's records?"  
The woman was taken aback, she usually received scorn from mages, this girl wanted to introduce her to her friends and actually thought someone would care enough about her heritage to document it. Fate could see the woman was surprised but she wasn't sure why, "Um if I offended you in any way I'm sorry, I know it can be hard to be different, if you don't want to I'd understand."  
Blanca was not used to people being concerned with how she felt, she had to slog her way into the Enforcers, fighting tooth and nail for her position and still knew at any moment if she made a misstep she'd be thrown under the bus without compunction. "What do you know about being different mage?"  
Fate laughed at the question, she had been sure everyone knew what she was, she hadn't tried to hide it, "Artificial mage, I'm a clone."  
"What!" the woman screamed jumping up and looking at the smiling blonde, "I thought you were the daughter of Admiral Lindy Harlaown. Where the hell would she have found an artificial mage?"  
"You really don't pay much attention to rumors and gossip around headquarters do you?" Fate said her smile turning rather sad.  
Blinking at the strange statement, "No, of course not, I have better things to do."  
"Well if you had you would know all about me, it's big news to some, especially since I'm also a convicted criminal."  
The tow headed woman shook her head, "What the hell are you?"  
"The short story is I was created to resurrect my clone progenitor, my creator set me to collect lost logia for her in attempt to access Al Hazard. That's why I ended up on Non-administrated World 97 or Earth and met Nanoha. Lindy-oka and Chrono-nii came when our fighting over the jewel seeds nearly caused a dimensional rift on Earth, Nanoha convinced them I wasn't evil before I was captured. Ha-ah she was the one to do it too knocking me out with her first Starlight Breaker I might add. Considering I nearly killed her a few times I don't know how she was ever able to see the good in me but she did and that made it easier for others to do the same. After I was in custody Lindy-oka talked with me and after some time together we grew closer and she offered to adopt me, after thinking about it for a while and Nanoha's support I agreed."  
"You mean you didn't immediately jump at the chance to be adopted?" Blanca asked with disbelief.  
Shaking her head, "I to learn to be a separate person from my progenitor's memories I was given, I really had to be Fate, an individual, before I could ever hope to be a proper daughter for her. I was also scared of trusting people, everything I knew up to that point of my life had been a lie, the only person other than my familiar I even felt the slightest trust towards was Nanoha."  
Fate's tone whenever she spoke of the auburn haired girl was gentle and tinged with warmth it made Blanca wonder. After this talk the two partners grew closer, it was a slow process but the more the witch learned of the girl the more she could see she was a trustworthy person who would not betray a friend, a trait learned from her precious Nanoha. It became harder and harder for the reclusive woman to hold back her newly formed attachment to the blonde. Despairing she thought the girl had to be the most perfect person in creation and wishing her dedication and love was focused on herself instead of the inestimable Takamachi Nanoha.  
~"~"~  
When they arrived at Alpha Hamal Blanca no longer felt it necessary to double check every little thing, she knew Fate would not allow anything go wrong, would not slack off, would never put them in a disadvantage position. Fate recorded her latest video mail to Nanoha before sealing the disc and placing it in the outgoing mail. She told Nanoha she loved her, would be careful not to exceed her limits, and her hopes of being home again soon. She did not say goodbye but see you soon, she never wanted to say goodbye as it sounded so final and nothing would keep her from returning to Nanoha's side.  
The ground troops cleared the outer sentries for the abandoned fortress which housed the lost logia, everything was going smoothly and no casualties had been reported. Fate's plan was remarkable and now they were able to take down the next level of physical defenses and enter the keep. Sending out the different platoons to secure each section of the grounds once the all clear was given then the Enforcers moved in to break through the magical reinforced gates and descended into the murky depths of the fortress's vaults.  
They had cleared the magical animal sentries which were activated by their presence breaking out of their stone cocoons. Terrible beasts with fangs and claws or talons and becks that relentlessly attacked the pair. Both came out unscathed and proceeded forward finding the pulsing crystal lost logia set in a stone altar. Fate was about to proceed to seal the powerful device when Blanca caught her arm, "Fate."  
Turning to look at the woman had had come to see as a friend and trusted partner, "Yes Blanca-san?"  
The woman looked into burgundy eyes that showed nothing but concerned interest, no loathing, no spite. Blanca pulled her forward and tried to kiss her. Fate at first didn't know what she had intended but once their faces came closer she moved to break the tight hold on her and stepped back from the older girl. Confused and a bit disappointed, "What do you think you're trying to do?"  
Flushed red with embarrassment and anger at herself Blanca suddenly wanted nothing more than to disappear. Fate knew they would need to speak about this but now was not the time she turned away and headed back towards the lost logia to seal it. She had set up and had nearly had everything ready when the angry flutter of wings was heard. Fate looked up and saw a raptor like bird-creature five times bigger than the ones they had fought originally. It began its dive on Weathers, bare seconds were all the woman had and she was distracted by her own turbulent emotions.  
Fate instantly moved into her sonic form and pushed herself to the limit catching the woman in her grasp to push her out of harm's way. The bite of sharp talons tore through her thin Barrier Jacket and the flesh of her back was torn into by three razor sharp talons. The pair fell ungracefully in a tumble as Fate hadn't been able to control her stop properly through the pain haze. Blanca saw the creature and immediately began to fight it and block its further attack on the pair. Blood ran from Fate's wounds pooling around her, the sharp pain bringing back memories of her creator's whippings. Knowing the creature would deactivate the moment the lost logia was sealed she picked up Bardiche and with the remaining strength she had fired off the sealing spell before blacking out from the depletion of mana and blood.  
~"~"~  
When Fate awoke she was in the ship's sick bay and Weathers was sitting in the chair next to the bed. The normally impeccable woman was disheveled and clearly had been crying. Fate reached out for the hand that was resting next to her own, croaking out in a dry voice, "Blanca."  
The woman heard and snapped her eyes open, looked down at their joined hands and thinking she was the one to initiate the contact tried to pull away. Despite her weakness Fate held fast to the retreating hand, "Please stop, its okay I'm the one who took your hand."  
The tow headed woman's face crumpled and she shook her head, "No, let me go, I'm a horrible person, a god damn wicked witch just like everyone says."  
Fate squeezed her hand then coughed to clear her throat, "Blanca-chan you are not a wicked witch, you are my friend," seeing the look of disbelief on Blanca's face, "yes you are. I love Nanoha and will never stray from her but I still want us to be friends even if you did try to cross the line with me a bit. I know when one is lonely sometimes we can let our feelings run out of control. So if you are willing can we both try to forget the whole thing and let things go back to how they were?"  
"No, I nearly got you killed with my stupidity, I let my emotions distract me during a mission, I should be court-martialed and sent to the brig."  
"Hey, we all make mistakes, we are more or less only human," Fate twitched her a smile thinking back on a few hushed whispered insults she'd received from unaccepting crew members.  
Tears once again flowing the older girl looked at her flabbergasted, "How the hell can you joke about this? This is all my fault, you should be demanding my resignation, hell my head on a pike."  
"Do you really think you are the first person who's tried to steal a kiss from me? Besides if I can forgive Vita-chan for being distracted while on duty and nearly allowing Nanoha to be killed I think I can forgive you for the same."  
"Are you sure you're not crazy, they say artificial mages normally have cognitive issues," the girl half joked half wailed at the incredible scope of forgiveness the girl had.  
"Oh I'm fine cognitively, all my tests have shown me to be quite bright and my emotional stability is solid as stone thanks to Nanoha, Chrono-nii, Lindy-oka, and all my other friends' support. Besides you shouldn't be surprised, I would be the last person in the multiverse to deny a person a second chance. After all I'm on my second chance and it was only after we stumble that we really learn how to walk."  
Fate squeezed the hand in hers again, "Let's be friends properly this time. If you can respect my relationship with Nanoha then I swear I will always be your friend and to help you in any way I can."  
Choking back a sob from the gratitude and relief, "I would really like that Fate."  
~"~"~  
When the Aquila arrived back in dock again a month later Fate's wounds had closed but it still pained her and left her nearly immobile. Once she got to Shamal she hoped the tight pain in her back from the fresh scars could be eased and would soon be fully healed. The short haired blonde boarded the ship and through the use of the transporter had her recalcitrant patient whisked her off to her office for a full check up. Upon arriving in the medical offices the young blonde immediately saw her mother and Arf sitting in chairs awaiting her arrival.  
"Mom, Arf it's great to see you both, don't worry about the wounds, just a few scratches Shamal will have me patched up in no time," she tried to gloss over with a winning smile.  
"Fate, don't try to pull the wool over my eyes on this one, I know how bad this was and once Shamal is done with you I'm taking you straight home for bed rest," Lindy huffed at her daughter.  
"But Mom what about Nanoha… and the others. I want to see them," Fate pouted as Shamal made short work of divesting her of her patient's gown and bandages.  
Shamal deciding to play dirty poked the wound a bit more forcefully then she normally would to check its flexibility and texture. Fate let out a squeak of pain and turned with tears in her eyes, "Geez Shamal do you really have to poke me so hard? That hurt like the devil."  
Arf barked a laugh, "You would know. Your poor little devil is waiting for you out in the hall, don't worry Lindy-oka and I weren't going to steal you away without giving you a chance to see each other."  
Lindy smiled at the tease, "Quite right, the gods know I wouldn't want to be on her bad side. Speaking of which where is that partner of yours? She should have come in with you for this check up."  
Fate was now laying on her stomach, a position she was growing to hate, as Shamal was rubbing magically infused ointment on her back and using her healing spells to quicken the healing process. Groaning at the relieving tension of her back, "She was going to be escorted off ship by the admiral for the hearing. I have to stay for that, I don't want her punished severely, she's suffered enough."  
All three women looked at each other with confusion, sure Fate had asked for her superior to be let off but they hadn't known how serious to take the request. Lindy decided to cut to the heart of the matter, "Fate dear, the woman tried to take advantage of you and allowed you to be seriously wounded while on duty through her own inattention she needs to be dealt with properly."  
Swinging her feet to the floor and pulling on her uniform blouse, "No, she made a mistake, she deserves a second chance. Mom when I stopped her she didn't try to force herself on me. Maybe her timing was a bit off but once a person is rejected you can understand how they could be distracted."  
"Give me one good reason why she should be, from everything I've heard about the woman she deserves to be brought down a few notches," her mother replied hotly.  
"Fine, she's a witch who has no friends or family and I was the first person to reach out to her and she let her feeling run away with her. And I do mean a Witch, she's not a mage, that's why she has always been so hostile with others, she was reacting to all the hostility flung at her all her life."  
Taken aback with this outburst, "We didn't know about her magical background, it was sealed. Oh my…but Fate still she does need some kind of reprimand for all this," Lindy tried again.  
"She has already been punished, she took on extra duties, has apologized to me and has agreed to an official reprimand to her record, please just let this go."  
"Fate really," her mother and Arf exclaimed.  
"God, meet her first before you start throwing stones at her, please, give her the benefit of the doubt, you know mom like you did for me originally, like we all did for the Wolkenritters," Fate pleaded looking at her familiar and the two women who had earned her total trust.  
~"~"~  
When Nanoha learned of Fate's injuries and most of the details of the how's and why's surrounding the event she didn't know how to deal with her turmoil of emotions. Her first thought was to blast the woman the second she saw her but Fate had already requested (multiple times) that she forgive and forget the incident. That had left Nanoha slightly disturbed, did Fate have feelings for her senior Enforcer? God damn it, first the rat and now a witch…a real witch…was moving in on her Fate-chan when she wasn't around to protect her. Is this going to be a pattern?  
The office door opened and the first one out was Fate with a seriously determined look on her face which Nanoha normally found irresistible but now left her frozen, was she thinking about that witch? Fate turned and seeing Nanoha her face split into a wide smile and with three quick steps she closed the distance and pulled her into a tight hug. Nanoha scared to hurt her slid her hands up the back of her arms and held her gently at the shoulders before pulling away.  
Fate didn't want to let her go and just loosened her grip and kept her hands at Nanoha's waist to hold her close. Leaning her face down she caught Nanoha's lips in a brief but warmly loving kiss, her mother was right behind her so she did her best to restrain herself. Pulling back from the kiss with a sigh, "I missed you so much Nanoha, once I'm done with the hearing I hope you'll come home with us and spend some time with me."  
Nanoha started shaking, she was going to the hearing to protect the woman who nearly killed her. Pulling away she tried to restrain the flood of conflicting feelings. In a subdued voice she said, "I'm glad you're back and okay Fate-chan, I need to go back on duty now but I'll come see you again soon."  
Fate felt a rush of frustration at this display, god didn't Nanoha trust her? Fate abruptly excused them from the group and pulled Nanoha into an empty examination room. Slamming the door closed and pressing Nanoha against the door with her body she kissed the girl senseless as her hands ran over the body she had missed for three months, six days and two hours. The moaning and gasping noises enticed her to continue as she began to suck at her pulse point and her hands skimmed up her uniform mini-skirt to find her lover's overheated core.  
Pushing aside her panties Fate began to rub her swollen nub and reveling in the slickness. She pulled her mouth away from Nanoha's neck long enough to whisper, "I love you, only you. You are the only one I want to touch and to touch me," then she jammed two fingers into her dripping core.  
Nanoha arched into Fate's driving hand, her arms wrapped tightly around her neck to hold herself up as her legs now refused to support her. Fate's mouth once again covered hers in an attempt to dampen her cries of pleasure. The pounding force, the sheer possessiveness of the kiss left the sapphire eyed girl feeling like she was coming undone. If not for Fate's grip on her surely she would have unraveled and melted away in this searing heat. Then a third finger ploughed into her and she came hard losing her grip on the taller girl and nearly falling if not for the arm that held her tightly.  
Fate lowered them both down to the ground and pulled Nanoha onto her lap hiding her face in her sweet smelling hair crying. Hearing the quiet sobs and wetness of her tears Nanoha shifted to hold Fate tightly trying to shush her and calm her lover. "It's okay Fate-chan, oh please don't cry love. Please Fate-chan talk to me."  
"I missed you so much and I love you so much but you don't trust me. I was just trying to do the right thing, like you would, like you taught me," the words came out in choking sobs full of pain.  
"Oh Fate-chan! I trust you, I do but I can't help being jealous of anyone who tries to get close to you. She tried to kiss you, I know you stopped her and nothing happened between you. But I just hate the idea of anyone trying to touch you, especially when I can't be with you."  
"Nanoha she has no friends, no family, she's all alone in the world, I just wanted to be her friend. I wanted her to be happy, I wanted to show her that not everyone is bigoted against witches. I thought if I could just reach her and show her that there are caring people in the world then I could somehow repay the universe for bring you into my life and saving me."  
Squeezing her best friend tightly, "Oh Fate-chan, I really don't deserve you in my life, you saved me just as much as I saved you. I was so lonely before you, you complete me, make me feel like I can do anything."  
A sharp smack was heard and Nanoha squeaked in shock and pain. Fate's offending hand then rubbed the tender spot as she growled, "I told you I would spank you if I ever heard you say that you don't deserve to be with me again."  
Nanoha pulled away and saw a fierce look in burgundy eyes, burning love and determination to reinforce the knowledge that the one place Nanoha belonged was by her side. Cupping her face with her hands Nanoha leaned in for a kiss then pulled back, "I love you Fate-chan. I don't ever want to lose my place by your side. I'm afraid I have become rather greedy when it comes to you but I promise I will work on my jealously."  
"Good and I promise I will never do anything to ever make you question my feelings for you. If I do though please Nanoha talk to me about it, I don't want there to ever be a time where you feel insecure," Fate said to her tenderly before kissing her again.  
A knock on the door broke them out would have likely been the start of a round two. Groaning Fate called out, "What!"  
"Fate-chan you need to get to the hearing, they called for you," Shamal's voice called back muffled.  
A deep blush flooded Fate, she had gotten caught up in Nanoha that she had forgotten all about the hearing. Nanoha saw the blush and giggled, "Okay Shamal-sensei we'll be out in just a second."  
Nanoha stood up and then helped Fate to her feet before brushing off her clothing and trying to straighten them. Fate decided to help and had to use every ounce of her self control not to do more than help. Nanoha in turn helped Fate straighten her hair which somehow became mussed during their encounter. Finally both presentable again they exited the room to the broad grin of Arf who looked like she was only barely restraining herself from teasing the pair. Lindy and Shamal also had matching smirks but everyone was gracious enough not to say anything but allowed a beet red Fate to take the lead.  
The hearing convened and after giving her testimony and the data from Bardiche was reviewed it was clear that though Enforcer Weathers actions were ill thought for the situation there was no attempt to sexually assault her junior. The court took Fate's recommendations and dismissed the accused from the court. Fate greeted her friend and began the rather awkward introductions to her family and girlfriend.  
Immediately Weathers bowed and apologized to the assembly, especially to Nanoha. With earnestness, "Captain Takamachi, I must apologize to you most. Fate made it clear many times how she feels for you and I'm afraid I let my emotions carry me away. I have never known anyone like her before and…sigh I just wish I could have someone as wonderful as her in my life."  
"Enforcer Weathers I know Fate-chan can be pretty overwhelming, I know from the first time I met her I knew I had to have her in my life no matter what. I'm not happy with what you tried but I can understand loneliness and how it can make one do things they normally wouldn't do. Fate-chan told me a bit about your history and I think the two of you have had similar experiences so it probably made it even easier to get um… wrapped up in her."  
"Let's be honest, I let myself get obsessed with her. I've just never experienced friendship before and let things escalate in my head."  
Fate blushed at this as Nanoha laughed her signature giggle, "Nyahaha yes it can be very easy to be obsessed with her, I know I'm. We two are not the only ones either, I fear Enforcer Vespers also fell prey to her charms but at least you had the decency to not to try to push yourself on her or lash out at her."  
Then Nanoha did something Blanca did not expect, she hugged her. Whispering in her ear, "You are forgiven, just don't try anything like that again or I'll be forced to Starlight Breaker you into oblivion."  
Fate blushed harder and covered her face in her hands as her mother and familiar laughed. Well if Nanoha can forgive her who were they to hold a grudge after all if she screws up again a Starlight Breaker is a hell of a lot worse than having a house fall on you.


End file.
